Tricks and Treats: The 2012 Halloween Collection
by Lodylodylody
Summary: It refuses to die! The fourth annual Suite Life Halloween collection. Experience the tales of horror, humor, romance and more...brought to you by the many fine Suite Life authors!
1. Introduction

_**The Last Halloween? **_

by Lodylodylody

*****'*****

"Come on!" Connie urged excitedly. "The party is going to start soon!"

Emma Tutweiller shook her head at her partner's over the top enthusiasm. Even after years of living together, she still found Connie's trademark exuberance amusing.

"Just let me make sure my hat's on straight," the former school teacher replied as she took a final look in the mirror. The attractively cut witch costume she'd chosen for the occasion looked quite satisfactory in Emma's opinion…but she was less sure about the large witch's hat.

"Oh you look fantastic!" Connie insisted. "I wish I looked half as good."

Emma shot her a mischievous look. "Why would you want to look less attractive? You're stunning."

Connie blushed. As a lark, she'd decided to try to emulate one of Emma's most successful costumes from past Halloweens. And though she felt somewhat glamorous in the sexy gown and with her hair perfectly coiffed, she still thought her version of Jessica Rabbit was a pale imitation of Emma's.

After a few more moments of Emma adjusting her hat, the two women left their hotel room at the Boston Tipton and made their way to the party.

*****'*****

"This is an awesome party," Bailey told Cody. "I'm glad so many people could make it."

"I know," he responded to his former girlfriend. "London was pretty generous in flying in all our old friends."

"Speaking of old friends," Bailey went on. "Look who's here."

Cody looked over and saw the former hotel manager Marion Moseby, along with his wife Samantha, dressed as Uncle Sam and the Statue of Liberty. He and Bailey made their way over to say hello.

"You two look patriotic," Bailey said.

"I thought it was appropriate," Samantha answered. "Seeing as how Marion will soon be the newest member of the U.S. Senate."

"Sam please," Marion laughed. "The votes aren't counted yet. Though the polls look promising."

"I still am surprised sometimes to think about you going into politics," Cody said.

"Well, after spending years dealing with immature and childish lunatics who were always hatching ludicrous schemes, I feel quite qualified to deal with politicians," Moseby laughed.

Samantha began to talk more about the upcoming election, but Moseby reminded her that tonight she was here as his wife, not his campaign manager. And so the topic shifted to the other guests. They spotted London and Zack at the other side of the room, the two of them utterly engaged in one another. They also saw Carey and her husband Nick talking with Esteban and Maddie (who were still celebrating their recent engagement) and Connie and Emma.

"You know it's somewhat odd," Bailey observed. "Look at all the romances that started at Halloween."

"I do believe you're right," Moseby replied. "How peculiar. Especially considering some of the pairings. Did any of us ever envision London with Zack? And I still recall the looks on all our faces when Emma and Connie announced their relationship."

Cody laughed at the memory. "That was quite the topic of conversation for a while."

The party continued and Cody and Bailey mingled more with past friends. Bailey was delighted to see Jessica, as well as her twin sister Janice. Though Bailey and Jess were in almost constant contact, Jessica's busy schedule as a successful model meant that she and Bailey couldn't get together in person as often as they wished to.

Old class mates from the Semester at Sea program were there…Woody, Addison, Becky and Holden. And all of Zack and Cody's old Boston friends were there…Max, Barbara, Bob and the rest of the gang. The party was going wonderfully.

And then all Hell broke loose.

Literally.

In a sudden terrifying explosion of smoke and brimstone, an unearthly spectral form appeared in the middle of the room. At the exact same moment, the doors to the ballroom slammed shut…magically sealed.

"Finally!" The spectral figure screamed. "I vill have mein revenge!"

Though all the party goers gasped in fear, many of them also gasped in recognition. Maddie was the first to say the dreaded name aloud.

"Ilsa!"

"Yes," the ghost of Ilsa hissed as she bore down on Maddie and Esteban. "I've come back to destroy you all! Und I'm saving you two for last! But now…who vill be first?"

Not everyone at the party was aware of the past...where Ilsa had been revealed to be a demon worshipping witch who'd intended to sacrifice Esteban and Maddie to some ungodly creature, only to end up devoured by the beast herself thanks to Maddie's quick thinking…but such knowledge was not necessary to understand that everyone at the part was now in serious danger.

"Uh, wait one second," Zack spoke up, trying to buy some time. "You're just going to kill us all? Just like that? Seems inappropriate…especially for Halloween."

Ilsa's rage was replaced by confusion. "Inappropriate? How? This seems like the perfect night for a bloodbath."

"Well, sure," Zack responded. "As a finale for the night…but first you need a lot of proper Halloween activities to lead up to it. Like…um…like…"

"Scary stories!" Bailey interjected. "We need a lot of nice Halloween related stories first!"

Ilsa looked incredulous. "That's silly!"

"No, no," Cody added. "It's classic. Don't you see? We're all gathered here…we tell a bunch of stories…each trying to outdo the other in how 'Halloween-y" it can be...and then…"

"Und then…I outdo all the stories by slaughtering you all," Ilsa concluded as a smile came to her ghostly face. "I LOVE IT!"

Zack, Bailey and Cody felt a sense of relief, seeing that their spur of the moment plan was working. The more stories they could come up with…the more time they'd have to figure out a way to escape. But their relief faded a bit when Ilsa spoke next.

"Vell?" she asked. "Who has the first story?"

"Um…give me a second," Zack said. "Just one second…"

_**To be continued? **_

*****'*****

_**Author's note: **__Alright people. Zack and Cody and the gang need some stories or they're all going to be slaughtered HORRIBLY! Can you save them? Please (for their sake) send in your Halloween stories. Scary stories…funny stories…romances…anything! Otherwise, everyone will DIE! _

_BTW, if you're wondering in this introduction why Connie is with Emma, Maddie with Esteban etc. (not to mention why Ilsa is a dead witch), it all goes back to the very first Halloween collection. I wrote a number of stories then that were all stand alone tales…but designed so that they could all take place in the same 'reality'. I had fun with it so I later wrote a Christmas story with Moseby and Samantha (from __**Cory in the House**__) also set in the same reality. And then my last Halloween story (which got Zack and London together with some help from Connie) also took place in the same reality. _

_But that's all just for fun. Remember that all your own stories have nothing to do with this particular 'reality' of mine…EXCEPT…that if you don't send stories in…Ilsa will KILL EVERYONE! Save our heroes! _


	2. Lodylodylody

_**Petite Mort**_

by Lodylodylody

******'******

Carey was in an especially good mood as she entered the lobby of the Tipton Hotel. Boston was going through an unusually warm Indian Summer, the perfect kind of weather for jogging through the park in the early evening…which was exactly what Carey had gotten into the habit of doing. These little jaunts were proving invigorating to the lovely lounge singer, and she felt her overall fitness and energy levels were better than ever.

That was an especially nice feeling for a woman in her early forties to have.

"Hello Carey," Esteban greeted her from behind the main desk. "You are looking very happy. Did you have a fun run?"

"Yes, I did," she answered as she walked over to chat with her longtime friend. "And I'm proud of myself too. After so many years of having to force myself to exercise, I think I've finally gotten to the point where it's just something I do naturally."

"That is wonderful," Esteban replied. Though his smile was genuine, his voice betrayed a bit of fatigue. Carey couldn't help but notice that, in contrast to her own energetic state, Esteban seemed worn down and tired.

"You ok?" she asked. "Haven't been working too hard, have you?"

"No, work is fine," he answered before yawning. "Oh excuse me. Well…perhaps I could use more sleep sometimes. There have just been so many things to do. And my mother is coming to visit…so I have maybe been a little busier than usual. But I want to make sure everything goes smoothly. This is the first time she's been able to come see Francesca and me since the wedding. "

"How nice. But I bet your mother will fuss at you if it seems like you're not getting enough sleep."

Esteban rolled his eyes heavenward. "Oh, this is true." He laughed. "I will get extra sleep tonight. When she arrives tomorrow…I will be fine."

"Good." Carey said. "I'm looking forward to meeting her. Zack and Cody said some nice things about her in their emails. I don't know what your plans are…but if you have time, you and Francesca should bring her to one of my shows in the lounge."

"Who are we bringing to the lounge?" Francesca said as she joined the two.

Carey was startled for a moment, she hadn't even heard Esteban's wife approach them. But she recovered quickly and smiled at the younger woman.

"Carey was just saying it would be nice for us to bring my mother to one of the shows in the lounge," Esteban explained.

Francesca agreed that it sounded like a great idea. She exchanged a bit of light chit chat with Carey but then turned all her attention towards her husband.

"I'm going to run to the store, but I'll be back home soon." Her voice lowered slightly and a sly grin came to her lips. "If you could possibly end your shift a little early tonight…" She didn't finish the sentence but just smiled at him with a hungry look in her eyes.

Esteban smiled back, even as bit of color came to his cheeks. "I'll see what I can do."

Francesca leaned over and gave him a soft…sensual kiss. So sensual in fact that Carey actually felt the need to avert her eyes for a moment. Not because she found the display distasteful…more a matter of feeling like she'd be intruding on their privacy if she kept looking at them. (Despite the fact that they were hardly in a private setting).

When the kiss ended, Esteban was clearly blushing…though with a happy expression on his face. Francesca was also quite happy, but not blushing in the least. Apparently she was quite comfortable with public displays of affection…that was something Carey had never really noticed about her before.

_Ah…young love_, the singer thought with a bit of bemusement.

After Francesca said her goodbyes and left, Carey shot Esteban a knowing glance. "Still in the honeymoon phase, huh? Now I think I know why you're not getting enough sleep."

The man's blush deepened considerably. "Carey…please…" he said in an embarrassed manner.

She resisted the urge to tease him further and just gave him a friendly pat on the arm. "Have a fun night," she said before heading to the elevator.

And from what she'd observed…Carey was sure that he would.

******'******

The next night, Carey's show in the lounge had gone quite beautifully. All the extra energy she had seemed to add a bit more 'oomph' to her performances lately. And judging by the audience applause…'oomph' was a very good thing.

She hadn't seen Esteban and Francesca in the audience though.

_Maybe they'll be here tomorrow night,_ she thought. _I wonder how long Esteban's mom is staying? _

Carey went to the lobby and saw that Esteban was once again behind the desk. But when she approached him she was taken aback by his appearance. He looked exhausted.

"Esteban," she said with concern. A concern that only grew when he made gave no response. His eyes were glazed over and he gave no indication he was aware of her presence.

"Esteban!"

He stood up straight with a confused look on his face. "Yes? Hello? Welcome to the Tipton…oh…Carey...hi."

Without hesitation she took hold of his hand firmly and led him away from the desk…over to the nearest couch.

"Did you get any sleep at all last night?" she asked as she sat him down.

"Last night was…not good," he sighed. "My mother…she…" He looked down and shook his head.

Carey could tell he was upset. "Did something happen?"

"Francesca," he said quietly.

"Oh darling, are you still upset?" a voice said from behind Carey, causing her to jump in fright.

"Francesca?" The singer said. "Where'd you come from? I didn't hear you at all."

Esteban's wife shrugged and gave Carey an apologetic look for frightening her…but then turned all her focus back to her husband.

"There there, darling," she cooed. "Everything will be fine." She put her arms around him and he leaned into her…looking to be on the verge of collapse.

"Francesca," Carey asked. "What's going on?"

"Esteban's mother," she replied. "I don't understand why…but last night she started saying the most horrible things about me."

Esteban let out a despairing groan, causing Francesca to pat his head. She then continued to speak to Carey in a much quieter tone. "She hates me. And it all upset Esteban so much." She paused. "But we should not speak of it now. I don't want my husband hurt any further."

Sitting down on the couch next to her dejected spouse, the beautiful Latina kissed him gently on the cheek before whispering in his ear. As she spoke…his downcast expression started to change.

Carey watched as an unexpected smile came to Esteban's face. Then Francesca began nibbling his ear…then started a short trail of kisses down the side of his face to his neck…which she then began to…lick.

The smile on Esteban's face just grew wilder and nothing but blissfulness was in his eyes.

While Carey was glad to see Esteban happy…the whole scene seemed wildly inappropriate…especially the way Francesca seemed entirely unconcerned with being in the middle of the hotel lobby. Not to mention the fact that Carey was standing right next to them.

"A-hem," the singer said. She had to repeat herself several times before Francesca would turn to acknowledge her. "Not to be a prude…because I'm not…but don't you think this isn't the time or place for this?"

The younger woman shrugged. "Just trying to make my man feel better." Her attitude seemed very nonchalant given the circumstances.

"I think the best thing for him would be to get him to bed."

Francesca gave a wink to the singer. "I like the way you think."

Carey's jaw dropped at the other woman's response. "No, I mean he needs sleep. Look at him. He can barely stand or keep his eyes open."

"Uh…yes…of course," Francesca replied. "He does need sleep."

With that she led her dazed husband away.

******'******

Early the next evening, Carey finished another one of her jogs through the park and once again entered the Tipton lobby. But this time she noticed Esteban wasn't at his post. Instead there was Skippy, the assistant night manager, and a very irate older woman who was yelling at him in Spanish.

"Ma'am…Ma'am please…" Skippy pleaded. "I can't understand you."

The woman finally switched to heavily accented English. "Where…ees…my…Estaybahn? You tell me now!"

Skippy had no answers that could satisfy her apparently…so the woman kept screaming at him. Carey decided to try and help.

"Excuse me!" she said forcefully. "You say you're looking for Esteban?"

"Finally! Someone who understands me!" the woman exclaimed. "JES! I need to find my Estaybahn! I am his mother!"

"You're his mother? Senora Ramirez?"

"Didn't I just say that?" she shot back. "Am I the only one who understand English here?"

Carey took over dealing with the woman, giving the hapless Skippy a much needed respite. But as the conversation went on, Carey grew more and more confused…and not just because of the Senora's thick accent. The things she was saying were, quite frankly, ludicrous.

"These things you're saying about Francesca—" Carey began.

"No no NO!" Senora Ramirez interrupted. "Don't be estupida! That ees NOT Francesca! She ees la diabla!"

"Why would you say that about her? She's a sweet girl. What is your problem with her?" Carey asked.

"I have no problem with Francesca! You're not listening…that's NOT Francesca! I don't know where Francesca ees…but that thing with Estaybahn…I think she ees a succubus!"

Carey wasn't certain…but if she recalled a few horror movies correctly…a succubus was some sort of demon that fed on men's souls by having sex with them.

"Look, I'll admit that Francesca and Esteban have been a bit…overly demonstrative lately," Carey said gently. "But they're still practically newlyweds. It's understandable."

The elder woman dismissed Carey's words angrily. "She was never like this before! Don't you see?"

For a moment, Carey did have a few uneasy thoughts go through her mind. The recent behavior from Francesca was unlike anything she'd noticed in the past. And then there was the way she'd appeared out of nowhere.

_Oh, I'm being ridiculous_, she thought.

Further discussion with Senora Ramirez proved fruitless however. The woman would not be dissuaded from the idea that Francesca was some sort of monster. Eventually she stormed off…cursing in Spanish as she made her exit.

"Who-wee," Skippy commented. "She's madder than a bo weevil on a hotplate."

"That's one way to put it," Carey replied. "Where is Esteban anyway? Isn't this his shift?"

"Yeah, it is. But Francesca called in saying he's real sick tonight. So I'm covering for him."

"Did she say what's he's sick with?"

"Nah," Skippy answered. "But I'm guessing it's not too serious. Cuz she didn't sound too upset or anything."

"Oh? How did she sound?"

Skippy's cheeks turned red and he began to stammer a bit. Which Carey found odd.

"Just answer the question," she said firmly.

"Well, she sounded all…sexy-like," he finally said. "Like those women online with their webcams that you have to pay…uh, not that I ever talk to women like that!"

But Carey had no interest in the young man's embarrassment. She couldn't shake the feeling that something very strange was going on with Esteban and Francesca.

******'******

A few hours later Carey found herself at Esteban's front door. She just couldn't get idea out of her mind that something odd was going on with him and his wife. Under any other circumstances she would have simply called…but because of the strangeness of the situation she felt she needed to speak to the couple in person.

When she went to knock on the door however…she was surprised when it swung backwards at her touch. It hadn't been closed all the way.

"Hello?" she called out as she stepped inside. "Esteban? Francesca? Did you know your door was op…OH!"

Carey's exclamation of surprise quickly died and was about to be replaced with a scream of terror as she saw the body of Senora Ramirez laying on the floor. Though Carey was no doctor, the horrific way that the woman's neck was twisted left no doubt that she was dead.

But before the scream could erupt from Carey's mouth…she felt a hand on her shoulder. A hand the quickly spun her around and brought her face to face with a smiling Francesca.

"Carey…you should have called first if you wanted to come visit," she laughed.

"What happened here?" Carey demanded, while at the same time backing away from the other woman. "Did you kill—"

"So many questions," Francesca interrupted. "When did you become so nosey?"

"Esteban! Where are you?" Carey called out as she turned and ran. She heard some noises behind a door in the hallway and quickly entered, only to see a bizarre sight.

Esteban was there…on his bed…naked…and being attended to by three ghostly apparitions…all of which appeared to be Francesca. For his part, Esteban appeared to be utterly oblivious to Carey's presence.

He was also clearly in the throes of ecstasy.

"How rude," Francesca, the non-ghostly one, said from behind Carey. "Interrupting us in the midst of conjugal bliss."

"W-what are you?"

"Oh…I've been called many things over the centuries," she answered. "One name is as good as another. But since I'm wearing her form right now…you can keep calling me Francesca."

"You…you really are a succubus," Carey gasped.

"Oh now there's another name I've been called. You were talking to the Senora weren't you?"

"I did…before you killed her! Did you kill the real Francesca too?"

"Yes," the demon admitted. "But with her…she died happy. I had to seduce her after all so that I could take over her body. The old woman was another matter. I don't usually kill people violently." She laughed malevolently. "It's was a quite a treat. Twisting the old bat's head, hearing her neck crack…but it was over so fast." Her smile grew more and more evil. "With you…I want to take more time."

The demon/woman moved her left hand out from behind her back…revealing a very large, sharp knife. She lunged at Carey, who was barely able to dodge at the last second.

A frantic chase around the bedroom ensued…all the while Esteban remained in the bed, oblivious to it all. The spirit apparitions continued to pleasure him…and drain his life away.

Soon Carey was cornered and the demon attempted to plunge the knife into her chest. But Carey caught her wrist and the two began to struggle. The demon was fierce…but her physical strength was limited to the form she inhabited…and Carey was larger and stronger than Francesca. The benefits of the singer's regular exercise proved significant as well.

After what seemed like an eternity, Carey managed to twist the demon around so that the point of the blade was now facing its own chest.

"No…no…" it hissed through clenched teeth.

With a final push…Carey drove the knife right into the heart that had once belonged to Francesca. She screamed…then let out a choking sob which sounded disturbingly human before collapsing to the floor.

The apparitions around Esteban vanished and he lay still.

Carey, fighting back strong feelings of shock and horror, went to check on him.

"What is happening?" He asked weakly as she placed a hand on his face.

"What's the last thing you remember?" she responded.

"It's all so confusing…there's just one thing I know for sure." He found the strength to sit upright and look Carey in the eyes. "You saved me."

He put his arms around her and she hugged him back, supporting him at the same time as he was obviously very weak.

"It's going to be alright," she whispered, part of her feeling like it was a lie. How was he going to be able to handle the deaths of his wife and his mother?

"You are so wonderful Carey," he went on. "The most wonderful woman I know." His embrace around her tightened. "You know…I always had such a crush on you."

"I remember," she answered. Esteban had admitted his little crush to her sometime back, after he had met Francesca. Carey had found it flattering. It might have even been something she'd have acted on, if she'd known about it before Esteban was off the market.

_Wait…why is he bringing this up now?_ she thought. _And why am I just sitting here holding him? We have to call the police…there are two dead bodies here…what are we going to say? _

Yet even as she thought this, she didn't try to get up. She felt Esteban's strong embrace…it was so easy to relax in his arms.

_Strong? Wait…he was weak as a kitten a second ago! _

Her mind continued to struggle as he began to kiss her neck and his hands began to remove her clothing. Her thoughts felt fuzzy…and didn't clear again until she was laying back on the bed, completely naked with Esteban on top of her.

"What? WHAT!?"

"Don't fight it Carey," he whispered. "This is going to feel so good."

And she found that she couldn't fight it…couldn't get her body to do what her conscious mind was telling her…for it was pure animal instinct that was moving her limbs now. Pure animal lust that was in control.

In control even though Carey now knew that it wasn't really Esteban that was on top of her.

"This is going to work out well," the demon said using Esteban's voice. "Francesca was fun…but your body is just as beautiful…and much stronger."

"You…can't…have…my body," Carey forced herself to say with great effort…then she moaned as Esteban's manhood entered her.

"Do you know what the French call an orgasm, Carey? Petite mort…the little death. Well, I can promise you there will be nothing 'little' about the one you're going to have. And then…that delicious body of yours is all mine."

Carey knew she should be terrified…and in her mind she was…but the demon was doing something to her. Flooding her nerves with so much pleasure that she couldn't resist. All she could do was listen as it gloated.

"You see, I can't possess a man's body for too long…and even if I could, I've drained all but the last of this one's lifeforce. But you…oh I'm going to be able to use your form for a nice long time."

Mentally Carey continued to resist, knowing how much danger she was in, even as she was having the best sex of her life.

But it would also be the last sex of her life.

"I DON'T WANT TO DIE!" she screamed, for one moment having full control of her vocal cords.

That was all she could manage.

"Who does?" the demon answered. "But look on the bright side, Carey. There are much worse ways to go."

The demon laughed, and tears ran from the corner of Carey's eyes. Still, the pleasure continued to build…inevitable…all consuming.

_No,_ Carey thought. _No…no…no…n- _

_..yes_

…_God help me…but yes. Yes. YES! _

******'******

Skippy was getting ready to end his shift at the front desk when Carey walked through the front door. He recalled that she'd gone out to go visit Esteban earlier but was surprised that she wasn't getting back until such a late hour.

"Hi Ms. Martin," he said.

"Hello there Skippy," she practically purred at him while flashing a seductive smile. "My but you're looking handsome tonight."

Skippy became tongue-tied and blushed furiously.

"How much longer until you're done working, Skippy?"

"I…I'm just about done right now," he answered.

"Well, why don't you end your shift by walking a poor single woman upstairs to her room?" she suggested while slowly running a hand up and down his arm. "And maybe you could come in and have a drink with me? Don't you think that would be fun?"

Though he was surprised at the invitation…there was no way that Skippy could disagree about the idea sounding fun.

******'******

**Excerpt from the greater Boston tourism guide, Spring 2013 - **

_Another reason to stay at the Boston Tipton is the lounge show headlined by the stunning Carey Martin. Not only does she have an amazing voice…but her stage presence is beyond compare. The woman exudes sensuality and sex appeal. _

_The only possible quibble we have with the Tipton is the night desk staff. Though certainly professional and friendly, many often seemed on the edge of exhaustion. Obviously the hotel cannot find enough people able to adjust to overnight shifts. This would explain their high turnover rate. _

******'******

**The End **

**_Author's note: _**_This is something I literally wrote in fifteen minutes (though the hunting through for typos afterwards took much longer) so I'm most curious to hear people's reactions to it. Oh...and I say Carey is really sexy even without being taken over by a demon. She and Esteban would be a fun couple for fic sometime too. :) _


	3. SilverTurtle

**DON'T LOOK IN THE SHADOWS **

by SilverTurtle

********'********

Bailey walked deeper into the bowels of the _S.S. Tipton _on her way to her teacher's inconveniently situated rooms. She tried to keep her wide skirts from brushing against the walls down here; they were filthy with grease and she was pretty sure there were things moving between the shadows cast by the inset lights. She didn't want her costume, a rather elaborate Good Witch dress, ruined before the end of the party on deck.

A couple of hours after the party had begun Mr. Moseby had noticed Miss Tutweiller hadn't shown, which was a problem because she was supposed to be a chaperone, and couldn't spare any staff to fetch her so had sent Bailey (as a generally reliable young person) to find the missing woman. Bailey didn't mind going. The boys had been in various stages of sugar highs and had been wearing on her patience so she was kind of glad for the reprieve. Besides, she was looking forward to seeing what sort of costume Miss Tutweiller had come up with. She just wished the walk from the deck to Miss Tutweiller's rooms wasn't such a long one, or so creepy.

Those shadows she'd noticed earlier appeared to be multiplying and she could have sworn there was squeaking coming from them. She could only suppose they'd gotten a sudden influx of rats since docking earlier that day because usually one couldn't find hide nor hair of a rat on the ship, Miss Tutweiller's numerous cats having made meals of them long since. She hoped the rats didn't decide to come out of the shadows, it was one thing knowing they were there but a whole other thing to see them up close and personal.

Several minutes of quick walking and shadow dodging brought her, finally, to her teacher's door and she knocked with perhaps a little more force than was necessary.

"Just a minute!" Bailey recognized Miss Tutweiller's frazzled tone of voice and leaned back on her heels to wait. After several long moments and the sound of a scuffle the door opened just a few inches to reveal Miss Tutweiller peering though while blocking the door with her body. "Bailey, what a lovely costume! How can I help you?"

"Uhm, Mr. Moseby sent me to get you. You're supposed to be chaperoning the party."

"But it doesn't start for hours!"

"It's been going for four hours now."

"What?" Miss Tutweiller pulled her head back inside and growled, "Which one of you set my clock back? Was it you Wiggums? You're always up on that shelf pawing at it!" When she removed herself from the door to go further question her cat Bailey followed her inside and shut the door behind them.

As she turned from closing the door she finally caught sight of what had kept her teacher too occupied to check her watch. "Whoa." Each of Miss Tutweiller's eighty odd cats was sporting a costume of some sort.

Miss Tutweiller turned around to see Bailey had followed her in, "Oh. Rats! I'll just be a few minutes getting ready. Make yourself comfortable."

Bailey, who had sat down in here before and had come away with enough fur to mold her own cat out of it, was hesitant to sit. Especially among cats looking as mutinous as these. She saw Wiggums, perched beside the clock, with bunny ears and a red waistcoat glaring down at everything with his own ears laid flat back. There was a whole gaggle of cats dressed as little sheep with one among them in a blue dress with a shepherd's crook. There was one group she guessed, based on the bald cap and cigar sported by two of them, portraying the Addams Family. In another corner was the most enormous cat Bailey had ever seen with his fur tinged green and wearing purple trousers. She looked more closely at the others around the room and spotted four of the remaining Avengers, the Thor cat even had a little hammer strapped to its back. There was a Woody from _Toy Story_, and Buzz of course. There were a full dozen dressed as various sushi pieces. "Where would you even find enough costumes for all of them?" she wondered to herself.

And received an answer as Miss Tutweiller reemerged dressed as the Black Widow, "I didn't find them. I'd have never been able to afford having them shipped here. I made them."

Bailey felt her jaw drop at the magnitude of the job, "Where did you find the time?"

Miss Tutweiller gave her a sardonic look, "It's not like I've got a buzzing social life."

"Even so, that's a lot of costumes."

Miss Tutweiller shrugged, "Once you rough out a pattern it's pretty easy to make any costume you want."

Bailey just shook her head. "Well, you look great in that costume. I didn't know you'd seen that movie."

"The boys talked about it often enough. And Zack answered a history question about how the Axis powers were defeated with 'Captain America'. It was kind of hard to ignore." Miss Tutweiller smoothed her hands over the hips of her black body suit and, satisfied, said, "Alright. Let's get moving."

"Sure," Bailey took one last look around the room and all the costumed cats and caught sight of an oddity, "Hey."

"Hm?"

"Why isn't Mister Whiskers in a costume?"

Miss Tutweiller's face went carefully blank, "He's a homicidal maniac, Bailey. They look just like everyone else." With that she pulled open her door and stepped out

Bailey just grinned and shook her head. Her teacher was a little bit crazy sometimes. She moved to follow Miss Tutweiller but Mister Whiskers beat her out the door, "Hey! Get back here."

She stepped forward to chase after the cat but Miss Tutweiller caught her arm. With that same carefully blank face she said "Let him go, he's got work to do."

Bailey looked curiously at her teacher when a sudden cacophony of panicked squeaking startled her into staring into the shadows. Homicidal maniac didn't seem too far off if she were looking at things from a rat's perspective.

Miss Tutweiller nudged her door open the rest of the way and let any of the other cats that wished to stream out the door and after the rats. She nodded, pleased, "They'll have the ship cleared in no time."

"I thought you weren't letting the cats out," Bailey said, a questioning lilt in her voice.

Miss Tutweiller turned a bright, and slightly crazy, smile on her student, "Not without their costumes!"

Bailey felt a shiver work down her spine at that smile. "Right. Let's...get to the party." She set off down the corridor and resolved to ignore all the terrified squeaking, sudden crunching, and unsettling squishing noises coming from the shadows. She decided it was best just not to know.

********'********

**The End**


	4. Tiger002

**The House**

by tiger002

***'***

The three college students gazed out the monotonous barren landscape of the New Mexico desert as they rode along in Zack's old pickup truck. While Zack tried keeping his eyes on the road, his girlfriend Maya rested her head against the window, bored at the dullness of the landscape. Meanwhile, their friend Kelsey road in the back seat, sketching everything that stood out to her in her notebook.

"This is so cool," Kelsey said, spotting a coyote in the distance.

"Only you'd find this desert exciting," Maya said with a roll of her eyes.

"How often do we get to see things like this?" Kelsey countered, enthralled at the new setting.

Before Maya could answer, they were interrupted by a rough sound, as if their car had gone over a big bump. Suddenly, the car began screeching along the ground and they spotted a tire rolling away. Realizing that they lost a wheel, Zack cursed loudly as he hastily pulled over to the side of the road.

"That ain't good," he said as he walked outside his car and scratched his head while looking at where the wheel should be.

"Really? I had no idea that wheels shouldn't randomly roll away," Maya said sarcastically.

"I guess we better call for help," Zack said as he pulled out his phone, only to discover that he had no reception.

"Either of your phones working?" he asked looking to his two friends, worry beginning to build in him.

"Nope," Kelsey said and Maya just shook her head.

They looked out in the distance, hoping another car would drive by soon, but the highway was completely deserted. Just then, it began to rain.

"Could things get any worse?" Maya asked, getting her answer via a bolt of lightning striking a nearby cactus.

"We need to get out of the rain," Zack said, shocked at how sudden the storm came.

"What about that house?" Kelsey said, pointing to a rustic looking building down the road.

"Let's go!" Zack said and the three of them ran as fast as they could, careful to avoid falling because of the wet roads.

"Maybe we could use their phone to call for help," Kelsey suggested once they were under the cover of the porch.

"Good idea," Zack said as he knocked on the door. However, as he pounded on the old wooden door, it fell over.

"That wasn't supposed to happen," he nervously said, contemplating walking away before the owners find out. He and Maya began backing away, not wanting to anger whoever lived in the house.

However, Kelsey's curiosity led her to walk into the house, hearing the sounds of a TV further in. "Is anyone home?" the fearless girl said slowly making her way into what appeared to be the living room.

"We probably shouldn't trespass," Zack said, getting a weird vibe from this place.

"Well we needed to use their phone anyway, and we should probably apologize for knocking their door down," Kelsey stated as she continued further in, causing her two friends to reluctantly follow. They spotted the TV that was playing a show in black and white.

"I Love Lucy?" Zack asked, remembering the characters he occasionally saw his mom watch on TV Land.

"Look at these," Kelsey said, walking forward and pointing to several paintings on the wall. One was a picture of the night sky, showing eight stars surrounding the moon in a perfect octagon. Right beside it was a picture of the Eiffel tower, except the tower was blood red, surrounded by eagles. That last painting was of a penguin holding a katana doing battle with a zombie tiger.

"They have strange taste in paintings," Zack noted, his sense of dread continuing to grow.

"I think we should get out of here," Maya said, breathing heavily, every horror movie she ever saw pushing itself to the forefront of her memory.

"She has a point," Zack said, slowly backing up to the doorway.

Suddenly, all the lights in the dimly lit house went out, causing Maya to let loose a high pitched scream.

"That's it, we're all going to die! I'm going to be devoured by flesh eating spirits and they're never going to find my body. Haven't you seen all the movies?"

"Calm down," Kelsey said grabbing onto her friend's shoulders to calm her, "We're just in an old house, and the power probably went out because of the storm. Nothing strange is going on."

As if to disagree, a phone began ringing.

"Is anyone…going to…answer it?" Zack asked, his body starting to tremble in fear.

"All right," Kelsey said, rolling her eyes at her friends' fear. She couldn't believe how scared they were, it was just a strange house in the middle of nowhere. "Hello?" she asked, picking up the phone."

"How long…" a raspy voice said, "shall you… the voice continued, taking long pauses, "Trespass!" the voice became louder right as the line died but it seemed to echo all throughout the house. Suddenly the music of a grand piano filled the air, and a powerful wind swept through the house.

"Okay, this is strange," Kelsey said, a mix of fear and excitement building in her. Something strange was going on, the perfect inspiration for her art, but at the same time she saw the danger they could be in.

"Let's just get out of here," Maya said, and the two others couldn't object. The three of them ran to the door, but as they did so they found the door was in place, as if it had never been knocked down. A powerful rumble of thunder echoed through the building as the lights flickered.

"Who dares step foot in my house?" an omnipresent voice stated with an authority that made the three cower in fear.

"Our car broke down so we came in here to see if we could use your phone to call for help," Maya said, "Please don't devour our souls." She fell to her knees, pleading with everything she had that this stranger would be moved by her tears.

"And you think that gives you the right to violate my domain?" the powerful voice demanded.

"Save me!" Maya squeaked as she cowered behind Zack, the two of them embracing for safety.

"We didn't do anything wrong," Kelsey bravely said stepping forward. She knew that if this really was a malevolent spirit, then they'd probably be doomed no matter what they did. So instead of cowering which obviously wouldn't do any good, she decided to stand up to whatever it was, thinking it couldn't make things worse.

"I see one of you actually has some guts," the voice replied, the demanding town faded.

Suddenly the lights flashed back on, and the three friends saw an elderly man standing in a stairwell holding a microphone laughing. "You guys gave me a good laugh."

"Wait, that was all fake?" Zack said, composing himself as best he could though he was pretty sure he needed to change his pants.

"Yep," the old man said as he continued laughing. "Oh, that was good. As soon as I noticed your car stop out in the middle of the read I knew you'd be coming here. Fortunately you were slow so I had enough time to hook up all my Halloween equipment. You aren't from around here are you?"

"No, we're in school in California and we were driving down to Texas for spring break but our car broke down here," Zack said.

"Ah, well I guess after scaring the crap out of you, I owe you an explanation. Every Halloween kids from El Sadago come to explore my haunted house. I set up all kinds of scary things for them to enjoy, and love seeing the looks on their faces."

"Well what about these strange paintings?" Kelsey asked, walking over to the three paintings she had noticed earlier.

"Well the one with the stars was because I love exploring and figuring out how things make sense," the old man explained.

"What about the one with the penguin and the tiger?"

"Come on; just think about how awesome killer penguins and zombie tigers are." The three nodded politely. "So I'm sure you've all wondered who would win in a fight between the two."

"Not really," Kelsey said with a shrug of her shoulders.

"Sheesh, children these day, no appreciation for the finer things in life," the old man said shaking his head.

"Well what about this one?" Kelsey asked, pointing to the one with the red Eiffel Tower surrounded by eagles.

"Oh that's my favorite!"

"Really, why?' she asked.

"Because the eagles represent the number of humans I make think are safe before I kill them," he said with a wicked grin.

In an instant, all the lights went out.

No one ever heard from the three again.

***'***

**A/N:** Ah, such a fun story. This was originally written for a creative writing class a while back, but with a little tweaking I thought it could make a good fanfiction. It may not take place at Halloween, but the haunted house, and the end fits the theme well. I think that's all, I hope you enjoyed it.


	5. James Doyle

**The Devil You Thought You Knew**

by James Doyle

******'******

Exhausted from her long flight, London Tipton fumbled for her key-card, then grasped blindly for the light switch as she entered her suite. As she made her way to the kitchen for a late-night snack, the appearance of her old sea school roommate Bailey Pickett startled her.

"Dammit, Bailey," cursed London. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"Zack let me in," answered Bailey. "But I think the better question is, where have you been?"

"None of your business," defended London. "Honestly! I know you've always been jealous of me, but this-"

"Do you honestly think I give a crap about your jet-setting?" interrupted Bailey. "Just tell me what you've been up to with my boyfriend, and I won't intrude on your little fantasy world again."

"Boyfriend?" reacted London. "Bailey, are you high?"

"Just answer the question." insisted Bailey.

"Well, let me put your mind at ease," answered London. "There is absolutely, positively _nothing _going on between me and Cody."

"Oh really?" asked Bailey. "Then would you care to explain why he's been with you on your private jet three out of the last five times you flew."

"I don't know what you're talking about," denied London.

Bailey sighed. "I was hoping I wouldn't have to resort to this."

Bailey activated the massive garbage disposal, and held a pair of London's pumps precariously over the opening.

"No!" pleaded London. "Not the Figaro Nucci special editions!"

"Are you ready to start talking?" asked Bailey.

"I really can't talk about it," said London.

Bailey held tip of the toe just above the blades.

"Okay, okay!" capitulated London. "I've been flying him out to an airfield in Quebec. He catches another plane from there. My dad said he was working on something Top Secret, so he couldn't risk flying him in one of our corporate jets. That's all I know, I swear!"

Bailey disengaged the garbage disposal, at which London breathed a sigh of relief. London's respite proved short-lived, however, as Bailey produced a flash drive from her pocket.

"I believe you," said Bailey. "But there's something fishy going on here, and one way or another, I'm going to find out what. I think it'd be a lot better for you if you'd help me."

London nodded. "Alright. I'll find out what I can."

A few days later, London waited on the tarmac as her private jet returned to Boston without her. After waiting some time, a small turboprop airplane landed.

"Get in," called Bailey, signaling from the plane. London did as instructed, and the plane took off.

Inside, London found Bailey and Cody's twin brother Zack, with their old schoolmate Woody at the stick.

"For the record," said Woody, "I would like to reiterate that this is a bad idea."

"What's he doing here?" demanded London.

"Don't worry," said Bailey. "He just got his pilot's license."

"Technically, I'm not supposed to be flying at night," added Woody.

"Just shut up and fly the plane," commanded Bailey.

"And what about you?" London asked Zack.

"Something weird's going on with my brother," answered Zack. "I want to know why as much as you do."

"Do you have the flight plan or not?" interjected Woody.

"Yeah, got it," answered London, handing Woody a clipboard.

"Copy that," said Woody. "Everybody hang onto something!"

Woody banked the aircraft hard to the left, tossing the occupants around a bit.

A few hours later, Woody scanned the surface for signs of civilization, and found what appeared to be a large warehouse.

"This has to be it," declared Woody. "It's the only thing for miles around."

"Don't land us too close," instructed Bailey. "We don't want to be spotted on approach."

"Aye, aye, Cap'n," obeyed Woody.

After a few hours of walking along the single-lane dirt road, the group approached the compound.

"Ow, ow, ow..." complained London with an obvious limp.

"Keep it down," admonished Zack in a hushed tone.

"I can't help it," defended London. "My feet are killing me!"

"You really should have worn the right shoes for this," scolded Bailey.

"Honey, these shoes look good with any outfit," retorted London.

"Focus, people!" interjected Zack. "We need to find a way in."

After searching the perimeter for several minutes, Zack returned to the hiding spot to report his findings.

"There's a back door about a hundred yards east," reported Zack. "My...um...special key-card should get us in."

"No guards?" asked Woody.

Zack nodded. "Not a single living soul anywhere in sight."

"I don't like this," said Bailey.

"Oh, come on," goaded London, following Zack as he took point. "I'm sure you'll see there's absolutely nothing sinister going on here."

Bailey sighed. In spite of her reservations, she was determined to find out what was going on, and thus followed the other three. Surely enough, Zack's forged Tipton key-card not only opened the door, but deactivated all of the security systems beyond.

"I can see why there weren't any guards," said Bailey, observing what appeared to be automated gun turrets mounted along the corridor.

As they approached what appeared to be the main area of the facility, London instructed the group to keep quiet as she heard her father's voice. Cautiously, she found a vantage point for the group behind the stack of crates. Once in place, they spied an elaborate laboratory, filled with devices none of them could identify, occupied by Wilfred Tipton, Cody, and Arwin Hawkhauser.

"So," marveled Tipton, gazing upon the glowing disk in the center of the lab. "It would appear you've done it."

"Yes, sir," answered Arwin. "System is stable; output is steady."

"Excellent," approved Arwin. "Stark has always refused to share his arc reactor technology for fear that it would fall into the wrong hands. Now that we have it, Tipton Industries is poised to leave Stark Industries in the dust."

"Ah, but why stop there?" asked Cody.

Bailey couldn't help but notice that her boyfriend had acquired a faint German accent. She began to wonder if he had truly lost his mind, and had embraced the pretension of being a mad scientist.

"You have something more ambitious in mind?" asked Tipton.

"The potential for this technology is limitless," continued Cody. "With unlimited cheap energy, we can provide ourselves with anything we need. We need no longer answer to anyone."

"Now, Cody," cautioned Arwin. "Let's not get carried away."

"My dear, Arwin," patronized Cody. "You've always had a brilliant mind. But you lack vision. Herr Tipton, I don't see why we need settle for anything less than the world."

"All right, Mr. Martin," said Tipton, straightening his tie. "I brought you in on this project because you have the sharpest intellect I've ever seen. But this is my project, and I'll decide where it goes. And given what I've heard, I have no choice but to remove you from the project."

"I'm sorry you feel that way, Herr Tipton," replied Cody, snapping his fingers.

At his signal, a group of armed thugs, Ilsa from the St. Mark and Patrick the Maitre'd among them, surrounded the three of them. As they emerged, they found the Seven Seas High alumni, and quietly goaded them out into the open.

"Ah, my friends!" greeted Cody as the four appeared with their hands in the air. "Welcome!"

"What the hell is going on here?" demanded Tipton.

"I gave you the opportunity to participate," explained Cody. "Since you refused, I no longer have need of you."

"You double-crossing little gimp!" insulted Tipton. "I will bury you for this."

"I think not," said Cody, activating a control that caused what appeared to be a cannon to descend from the ceiling on a crane arm.

"Auf Wiedersehen, Herr Tipton," said Cody as the device charged up. When it had completed its cycle, it issued a burst of bright blue light, and Wilfred Tipton dissipated into a blue cloud of energy, leaving only his clothing behind.

"Daddy!" cried London.

"You monster!" cried Arwin.

"I take it from your response that you have no intention of helping me," said Cody.

"You're an insane, murderous freak!" accused Arwin. "And you'll pay for what you've done here."

Cody sighed. "Farewell my friend."

Arwin screamed as Cody consigned him to the same fate as Wilfred Tipton.

"So what now?" asked Bailey. "Are you gonna vaporize us, too?"

Cody laughed. "Oh, my dear! I would not dream of it. As my friends, you will bear witness as I rebuild my empire."

Cody then turned to his minions.

"Hail HYDRA," he prompted.

"Hail HYDRA," they shouted in response, throwing their fists in the air.

A few hours later, the door to Bailey's holding cell slid open, and Cody appeared. He had shed his lab coat, and upon closer examination, he was clearly both taller and more muscular than Bailey remembered him.

"What do you want?" demanded Bailey.

"Now is that any way to greet your beloved?" responded Cody.

"You're not my boyfriend," declared Bailey.

"Then who do you suppose I am?"

"Dr. Johann Schmidt," answered Bailey. "Also known as the Red Skull. I figured it out when you identified yourselves as HYDRA. That was Hitler's top-secret advanced weapons research division. Nobody knows what happened to you, but the rumor is your outfit went rogue, and you died trying to unleash some kind of super-weapon. I don't know how you managed to get a hold of Cody's body, but I know it's you."

"Very astute of you," complimented Schmidt. "As for how I came to be as I am, you'll recall an incident wherein I burned my hands."

Bailey nodded. "You said your pressure cooker exploded."

Schmidt chuckled. "As it was, there was an artifact being transported aboard the S.S. _Tipton_under heavy guard. Insatiable in their curiosity, the Martin twins found an alternate means of ingress. Once they discovered the artifact, Cody urged Zack to leave it alone. Being the buffoon that he was, Zack accidentally broke the carrying case open. Cody dove to the floor and caught the artifact, burning his hands as he returned it to his case. A moment longer, and he'd have been vaporized, as I was seventy years ago."

"But your spirit...or whatever...was trapped inside the artifact," deduced Bailey.

"Yes," said Schmidt. "The artifact is called the Tesseract. It is a source of unlimited power to whoever holds it. And I was trapped inside of it, in the space between dimensions, until Cody released me."

"So why bother building this arc reactor?" asked Bailey. "Why didn't you just take the Tesseract?"

"Unfortunately, it took me some time to take control of this body," answered Schmidt. "By then, the Tesseract was in the hands of SHIELD. But I knew with my intellect combined with that of my host, I could build an energy source that would give me all of the power I needed."

"Why are you telling me all this?" asked Bailey. "Why not just kill me now?"

"Your beloved Cody still exists in the back of my mind," revealed Schmidt. "He still cares deeply for you. In order to shut him up, I'm willing to extend you the opportunity to be a partner in my ambitions."

"Yeah, well you can forget about that," refused Bailey. "The world's not perfect, but I don't want to live to see the nightmare it'll become under your rule."

"That is unfortunate," lamented Schmidt, "as I've no intention of killing you. You and your friends will witness as I bring the world to its knees. And then, when I no longer have need of them, you will watch them die, one by one. Then, when it suits me, I will dispose of you."

"Son of a bitch," cried Bailey, straining against the chains that held her to the wall.

Just then, a certain familiar twinkle returned to the young man's eye, and Bailey knew she wasn't talking to Schmidt anymore.

"Kill me," pleaded Cody.

"What?" asked Bailey in disbelief.

Schmidt growled as he regained control.

"Goodbye, my dear," he concluded as he left the cell.

Bailey cried out and began to sob as soon as he'd left.

Some time later, Bailey had passed out from sheer exhaustion. When her cell door opened, she expected more taunting from Schmidt. Instead, she found someone unlocking her shackles. She looked up to find her would-be rescuer to be none other than Patrick.

"Get away from me!" she demanded as she tried to shoo him off.

"Shhh," admonished Patrick, taking hold of her wrists. "It's okay. I'm here to help."

"Who are you?" asked Bailey, realizing that something wasn't adding up.

"I'm Agent Bristow of S.H.I.E.L.D.," revealed Patrick. "I've been working undercover in Tipton Security for several months now."

"Why didn't you help Arwin?" asked Bailey. "Or Mr. Tipton?"

"Their deaths were unfortunate," lamented Patrick. "But if I'd tried to intervene, Schmidt would've killed me, and my cover would've been blown. As it is, I'm ready to blow the lid off this whole operation. Let's go."

Patrick led Bailey into a weapons locker, where they found a rack of high-tech energy rifles.

"Good, they're fully-charged," observed Patrick, taking a rifle for himself and handing one to Bailey. "Can you shoot?"

Bailey nodded. "I did some clay-shooting back on the farm,"

"Good enough."

Bailey and Patrick had managed to free the other three, and began to make their way out.

"We need to capture Schmidt," said Bailey.

"Negative," argued Patrick. "At this stage, my orders are to neutralize him."

"Dammit, Patrick!" cursed Bailey. "Cody's still in there."

"You don't know that."

"I saw it in his eyes."

Patrick groaned. "Fine. We'll take him alive if we can."

As the group neared their exit, a guard spotted them.

"Freeze!" ordered the guard. Without hesitation, Patrick turned and vaporized him.

"I'm never complaining about my table again," Zack whispered to Woody, who nodded in agreement.

Unfortunately, this triggered an alarm, causing a host guards to descend upon them. Knowing the stakes, Bailey summoned up the fortitude to kill the guards without hesitation, and without mercy, as they continued to attack. Though they still managed to hold them off, it quickly became clear that the HYDRA soldiers had them surrounded. No sooner had they reached this conclusion than something came crashing through the ceiling.

From the rubble emerged a figure in a bright red metal suit, unfazed by HYDRA's weapons as he took them out with his own energy weapon.

"Somebody call for backup?" asked the armored man.

"Stark!" cried Patrick. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"Had to protect my trade secret, friend," answered Stark. "I'll deal with these cockroaches. Get these kids the hell out of here!"

"Roger that," agreed Patrick, leading the group out of the compound as Stark laid down cover fire.

Still dodging energy weapons blasts, Patrick and the four friends made their way through the forest. As they jumped over a small ravine, Bailey was distracted by an energy blast narrowly missing her head, and fell into the ravine. As she tried to climb out, she found her leg pinned beneath a large rock.

"Go!" she yelled as Zack and Woody looked down on her. "Go." she insisted in a much softer voice, beginning to cry. Reluctantly, the three remaining friends left her behind and made their escape.

After a few more minutes of trying to free herself, Bailey decided she needed to risk using her weapon to shoot the obstruction off. Just as she was about to do so, she found her arm pinned down by a HYDRA boot. This was no ordinary foot soldier however.

"Schmidt," she said, staring into the face that used to belong to her beloved.

Surprisingly, the young man lifted his boot off of Bailey's arm, and backed away with his hands in the air.

"Help me!" he cried. "Please!"

"Cody?" asked Bailey.

"Please Bailey!" he pleaded. "You must help me!"

Bailey began to believe that Cody had regained control and surrendered himself to her. However, as his jacket sleeve slipped, she saw the glow of a concealed energy weapon, she looked into his eyes, and realized this wasn't the young man she loved.

"Nice try!" said Bailey.

Schmidt chuckled. "You can't do it, can you?"

His smug grin turned to horror as he heard Bailey's weapon charging.

"Goodbye, Cody," she quivered as vaporized him along with the man who occupied his mind.

About a week later, London waited in a conference room in an unknown location. Her S.H.I.E.L.D debriefing having already been quite lengthy, she was in no mood to entertain whoever was knocking on the door.

"What?" she demanded. To her surprise, before her appeared not another agent, but none other than Tony Stark himself.

"Here to gloat, Stark?" asked London.

"Why would I do that?" argued Stark.

"Oh, let's see," said London. "My father's dead, having unknowingly committed considerable assets to a program that was part of some mad scientist's scheme, which means Tipton Industries is pretty well in the crapper at this point."

"So it would seem," agreed Stark.

"Look, Stark," defended London. "Bailey and I have both lost someone close to us. Neither of us are taking it well, so I'd appreciate it if you'd just leave us alone."

"Much as I'd like to oblige," responded Stark, "I have a proposition for you."

"Save it," refused London. "I'd rather Tipton Industries be liquidated than end up in your hands."

"Tempting as it is to have a monopoly on energy development," continued Stark, "Not to mention a foot in the door of the hospitality business, that's not why I'm here. S.H.I.E.L.D doesn't seem to think concentrating that kind of power into one person's hands is such a good idea. So they'd like you to take the reigns; pick up where your father left off."

"Considering both of the lead scientists on that project are dead," argued London, "I don't see how that's possible."

"Why don't you ask you friend Bailey?" offered Stark. "She's pretty sharp. Not as sharp as me, but then again, who is?"

London sat in silence for a few moments.

"Do you need some time?" offered Stark. "I could come back."

"So we're gonna try and make sure nobody tries to pull anything like this again?" asked London.

Stark nodded. "That's the idea."

London nodded in agreement. "Okay, I'm in."

**The End**

_**A/N:**__ This story is based on the Marvel Cinematic Universe continuity. Please don't ask me to be faithful to the comics; my head will explode! Excelsior!_


	6. Purplewowies

_**A/N:**__ Takes place in the same storyline as one of my stories (though kind of in an alternate storyline), but you shouldn't need to read the story. Does not take place at Halloween._

**_Abyss_**

by purplewowies

****'****

I remember when I fell down here. It was painful, though I don't remember why.

But if you asked me how many days I've been down here, I couldn't possibly answer you. It's so dark down here that it's obscured the passage of time.

All is black. There are no indicators of day or night, and though I do get tired, it's not on any schedule, and no matter how much I want to, I never sleep.

And the monsters. Though I cannot see them and rarely talk to them, I can tell that they are an almost constant presence. Some just prefer to argue with me, while others prefer to get physical. They all hate me and want me gone.

It's torture.

As far as I know, there's nobody here, and I don't like that.

****'****

I sit curled into a fetal position, alone, when suddenly, I hear a rustle. I know I am no longer alone and prepare myself for the attack I know is coming.

_I'm not afraid of you,_ I say, my voice audibly shaking with fear that I hope the monster won't notice. Futile hope.

_Zack, I just want to talk, _it says sweetly.

An arguing monster.

_Well, _I_ don't._

_Of course you do. I would not be talking to you otherwise. _Its sickeningly sweet tone makes me want to vomit.

_What's that supposed to mean?_

_You know…_

I stop to think for a second. What does it mean, "you know"?

_I don't think I understand…_

No reply.

This is not normal.

****'****

I lay face down in the abyss.

I just can't wrap my mind around what that monster said.

It wants to talk to me because I want to talk to it? Does that mean I control it?

Is this purgatory my own doing?

I stand, suddenly getting the feeling that I'm very unsafe here.

I was right. When I unconsciously back up, I feel the brush of a claw on my right forearm and break into a run.

I've had that happen enough times to know that it's the only warning I'll get before a monster beats me up.

_Wait! _it calls out.

Feeling compelled to answer it, I scream into the darkness.

_Why should I?_

_I just want to talk._

There it is again. My legs always ache every time I move, but I continue to push myself away from the danger.

_That's what they all say! _the insanity and despair in my voice apparent as I propel myself in the opposite direction as fast as I can.

_No, really._

I don't stop. It speaks again.

_You caused this, you know._

I slow.

_If you had not been so reckless and hotheaded, none of this would have happened._

I can't remember anything I did to cause this, but I have a strange inkling the monster is right.

I stop.

_Okay, explain exactly what's go—_

"Zack, I'm sorry."

Cody?

"I miss you, Zack."

Not knowing where my brother's voice is coming from, I hope the monster is also distracted, and I take this as a chance to run away.

The monster begins chasing me again.

_You know, your running is futile._

It doesn't matter.

_You should just give up._

My mind is growing tired, my legs are on fire, and my body screams the farther I go, but I know I cannot stop. If I stop, he will catch up, and if he catches up, he will devour me.

And I will not be devoured. I will _not _give up.

I keep running toward the sound of my brother's voice, but no matter what direction I run, it seems to be getting farther away until suddenly, it stops.

No.

**No.**

_No! _I exclaim.

_Do you not get it? _the monster says, growing closer to my person with every syllable it utters.

_None of this is real, _it continues.

_Omae wa mo shindeiru._

**You are already dead.**

What? I stop cold. Did it really just use an anime character's catchphrase on me? I'd laugh if I wasn't in so much mortal terror.

The monster has caught up with me. It grabs my left arm with both its hands, which are covered in matted fur. I hold in an agonized scream as it sinks its claws into my flesh.

_Did you think I was joking?_

_With a catchphrase like that? _I hiss through my teeth, struggling to no avail to free myself from the monster's powerful grasp.

_You have made a mistake, Zackary._

With that, I feel a jolt of pain throughout my entire body, then I face something infinitely more terrifying than darkness.

Nothing.

I guess at least I went kickin'.

****'****

_**A/N:**__ This fic felt like a piece of crap (and it's certainly short), but I thought, "Eh, I'll send it anyway. Anything to ward off Ilsa's wrath." My other story likely would have been better, but alas, 'twas not finished in time due to some real life things and computer problems._


End file.
